Abstract

The concept of linearization is fundamental for theory, applications, and spectral computations related to matrix polynomials.
However, recent research on several important classes of structured matrix polynomials arising in applications has revealed that the strategy of using linearizations
to develop structure-preserving numerical algorithms
that compute the eigenvalues of structured matrix polynomials can be too restrictive,
because some structured polynomials do not have any linearization with the same structure.
This phenomenon strongly suggests that linearizations
should sometimes be replaced by other low degree matrix polynomials in applied numerical computations.
Motivated by this fact, we introduce equivalence relations
that allow the possibility of matrix polynomials
(with coefficients in an arbitrary field) to be equivalent,
with the same spectral structure, but have different sizes and degrees.
These equivalence relations are directly modeled
on the notion of linearization,
and consequently inherit the simplicity, applicability,
and most relevant properties of linearizations;
simultaneously, though, they are much more flexible
in the possible degrees of equivalent polynomials.
This flexibility allows us to define in a unified way
the notions of quadratification and $\ell$-ification,
to introduce the concept of companion form of arbitrary degree, and to provide concrete and simple examples of these notions that generalize in a natural and smooth way
the classical first and second Frobenius companion forms.
The properties of $\ell$-ifications are studied in depth;
in this process a fundamental result on matrix polynomials,
the ``Index Sum Theorem'', is recovered and extended to arbitrary fields.
Although this result is known in the systems theory literature for real matrix polynomials,
it has remained unnoticed by many researchers.
It establishes that the sum of the (finite and infinite) partial multiplicities,
together with the (left and right) minimal indices
of any matrix polynomial
is equal to the rank times the degree of the polynomial.
The ``Index Sum Theorem'' turns out to be a key tool
for obtaining a number of significant results:
on the possible sizes and degrees of $\ell$-ifications and companion forms,
on the minimal index preservation properties of companion forms of arbitrary degree,
as well as on obstructions to the existence of structured companion forms
for structured matrix polynomials of even degree.
This paper presents many new results,
blended together with results already known in the literature but extended here to the most general setting of matrix polynomials of arbitrary sizes and degrees over arbitrary fields.
Therefore we have written the paper in an expository
and self-contained style that makes it accessible to a wide variety of readers.